Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1887-01-28


all that. as in other countries. certain
insults among the young fellows must
he washed out ~ blood. Thus one day
Kaulbars had made himself specially
obnoxious To comrade, the young
Prince M-lu-k-w. and received
slap in the face from the latter
challenge followed, of course. but when
the hour for thu bloody rencontre came
both of the principals were arrested by
order of the governor of the academy
and punished Tor their intended offense
by week. incarceration. 1t was
never actually settled who had acted
the informer on this occasion, but sus-
picion attached itself to young Kaul-
bars, whose bearing at the critical
moment seemed to justify it. He from
that hour on became all the more un-
popular, and this unpopularity follow
ed him into the army. An event which
happened about ten years ago tended
to even increase this feeling. There
was at that time serving IN the Russian
guard corps an eminent Afghan
prince, Sirdar Islander Ahmed Khan,
cousin-german of Abdurrahman
Kahn, the present ameer, and
a pretender TO the throne. This man
has Russian sympathies. and is even at
the present day protege of Russia, al
though he with the rest Of the Afghan
pretenders is now a nominal prisoner
of the shah of Teheran. had the
story of his encounter with Gen. Kaul-
bars from the lips of Islander Khan
himself. Well, then. Islander Kahn,
who bore at the time the rank and title
Of lieutenant colonel in the elite corps
named is an orthodox Moslem, but had
by long association with men in the cap
itals of the world learned to somewhat
relax his strictness in observing GER
tain tenets of his creed, such as drinking
wine, for instance. In fact. he had be-
come quite boon companion of the
bon vivants in the ranks of the Russian
army On one occasion Kaulbars was
one of his invited guests. and during
the carposal, which was kept up til
late hour Of the night, Kaulbars gross
" insulted his Afghan host. Next
morning when challenge was sent to
him, Kaulbars abjectly apologized,
and added that under no circumstances
would he tight a man under the direct
protection of the ear. All those who
knew him well attributed this course of
action on Kaubars' part to cowardice.
The Afghan prince, however, did not
accept the apology conveyed to him by
his second but insisted on a formal
one made in the presence Of witnesses
and in such humiliating terms to which
no man OF principle would have sub
mitted. But Kaulbars put up with
this. naughty treatment, and humbly
begged the Afghan pardon
A gentleman who knows Gen. Kaul-
bars quite intimately, Gen. Sherpaloff,
one of the most popular and intellect
ual men amongst the higher command
ers IN the Russian army, told me the
following incident TO which he was an
eyewitness: At dinner given by
Gen. Kaulbars. one of the lackeys in
attendance on the guests inadvertently
broke Sevres plate. Gen. Kaulbars
rose from the table. beckoned the man
to follow him into the adjoining room.
and then he administered to the poor
devil such a brutal castigation with a
horsewhip as to leave MIN bleeding
and unconscious on the floor. The
whizzing sound made by the whip in
cutting the air. and the suppressed
cries and sobs for mercy of the delin-
quent could be plainly heard by the
merrymaKers next door. Then the
host returned and resumed his seat at
the head of the table. exactly as if
nothing had happened. not even be-
slowing the slightest care on his half
murdered victim. -NeW York Mail and
fxpreSs.